My late mother-in-law Ann was born a Cazakoff. She was the youngest child and only daughter of George and Polly (Poznekoff) Cazakoff, Doukhobor immigrants who settled Canada in 1899. (For a brief explanation of this Russian religious group, see Family History Though the Alphabet – S is for …)
In 1948, Ann’s elder brother Philip legally changed his surname Cazakoff to the more English-sounding Casacove.
As a surname, Kazakoff developed from the word kazak, which means Cossack. According to the Doukhobor Genealogy Website, Doukhobors with the surname Kazakov “originated from the province of Tambor, Russia in the 18th century”.1
Kazakoff is one of the most common Doukhobor surnames in Canada; it ranked fourth in 1970.2 Other English spellings include Kazakow, Kozakoff, Casacove, Kazakove, Kasikoff and Kasakoff.3
Sources:
1. “Origin and Meaning of Doukhobor Surnames”, Doukhobor Genealogy Website (http://www.doukhobor.org/Surnames.htm : accessed 7 April 2009), entry for Kazakov.
2. “Origin and Meaning of Doukhobor Surnames”, Doukhobor Genealogy Website, entry for Kazakov.
3. “Origin and Meaning of Doukhobor Surnames”, Doukhobor Genealogy Website, entry for Kazakov.
Copyright © 2013, Yvonne Demoskoff.
Very interesting! Isn't it fun seeing how far back you can go in your family? I do this also with other interesting folks that I uncover along the way, and it's amazing how one thing can lead to other things!
ReplyDeleteIt's like being in a room where one door leads to another that leads to another... always more interesting folks to discover! Thanks for dropping by, Karen.
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